BILL NUMBER: S6836
SPONSOR: ROLISON
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the crime of aggravated
criminal contempt
 
PURPOSE:
To require certain sentences for aggravated criminal contempt to be
served consecutively.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends the penal law to expand the definition of aggravated
criminal contempt to include cases where an individual in a correctional
facility or local correctional facility commits criminal contempt in the
second degree in relation to disobeying or resisting the lawful process
or other mandate of a court.
Section 2: Amends the penal law to provide that when a person is
convicted of aggravated criminal contempt in relation to the provisions
added in section 1 of this act, after arraignment but prior to the impo-
sition of sentence on a pending felony charge, and if an indeterminate
or determinate sentence of imprisonment is imposed in each case, such
sentences shall run consecutively
Section 3: Provides the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Orders of protection are a critical component of public safety and our
criminal justice system as a whole. It is essential that victims and
witnesses are not subjected to intimidation, harassment, or especially
violence. Any failure or inability to enforce such orders jeopardizes
the confidence that a victim or other witness may have that they can
come forward safely, and so it is necessary that the State treat any
violation of these orders with the severity such violations warrant.
Situations involving domestic violence and orders of protection unfortu-
nately can carry tragic consequences when these orders are ignored. If
an individual is willing to violate an order of protection while in
custody, it is disturbing to consider what they may do once they are no
longer in custody if such a violation is not met with significant conse-
quences.
This legislation is inspired by the case of Melanie Chianese, a victim
of domestic violence who was senselessly murdered by her mother's inti-
mate partner. In the wake of the tragedy, despite being incarcerated,
the perpetrator has found a number of ways to continue to harass the
victim's mother via phone, letters, and Internet communication, despite
an order of protection being in place. This bill seeks to deter behavior
of this nature and prioritize the safety of victims and witnesses by
requiring that, in cases where an individual violates an order of the
court, such as an order of protection, and does so while in a correc-
tional facility and awaiting sentencing on a pending felony charge, then
any sentence for such violation and felony charge shall be served
consecutively.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S9543 of 2022: Referred to Rules.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S6836: 215.52 penal law, 70.25 penal law